More than half of all countries in the world have laws that restrict women from joining the workforce. The IMF says the global economy would benefit by Boosting Women’s Participation in the Labor Force, and hosted a seminar on the topic last fall during the Fund’s annual meetings. Sarah Iqbal participated in that forum and talks in this podcast about the hurdles women face when starting a business.
Read as well the IMF Survey story on Unleashing the Economic Power of Women [http://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/survey/so/2014/car091514b.htm]

Antibiotics have transformed modern medicine, but their overuse has resulted in more drug–resistant strains of bacteria. As resistance increases, people in poorer countries often can’t afford expensive second-line drugs.
Ramanan Laxminarayan, Princeton University and director of the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics & Policy.

South Africa can celebrate significant progress in its first 20 years of democracy, but faces the challenge of reviving a weak economy. Addressing structural constraints such as electricity shortages are key to increasing growth.

Despite his reputation as the father of greedy capitalism, Adam Smith did a great deal of thinking about the human condition and how to be a better, more generous person. One economist believes that Smith could change your life.
Listen to Russ Roberts on economics as entertainment: